Ehmry Bay: Into the Mists
by UltraElectroMagnetic
Summary: Ehmry Bay server's WvWvW struggle as seen through the eyes of two characters, an Engineer pledged to the NITE Crew guild, and a ranger of the VS Guild.
1. Prologue 1

Prologue, Part 1: Last Stand at Southsun

The skies were clear and the sea was calm as the Lion's Arch Frigate, _Sunfire_, sailed close to Southsun Cove.

"Prepare to make port!" barked the old Charr captain to his crew. Sailors and marines scrambled to their posts.

The _Sunfire_ was a warship commissioned and built by Lion's Arch to bolster the free city's already formidable fleet; she was a frigate, triple-masted, thirty guns, and plenty of speed and maneuverability for its size. Lion's Arch used to be a chaotic haven for pirates, but it had risen to become the wealthiest and most prosperous city in Tyria; The city was the home of the Black Lion Trading Company, which controls most trade across Tyria, both land and naval-based. The Black Lion is under the protection of the Lionguard, the armed wing of Lion's Arch, and therefore under the protection of the Commodore and the Captain's Council.

Many ships of the Lion's Arch Navy consist of privateer ships, mercenary pirates in a sense, and rare are the privateers who are absolutely loyal to the service of the free city. To mitigate the questionable loyalty of the privateers, the Commodore of Lion's Arch had several dedicated warships created to act as a more professional navy rather than a mercenary navy. These ships are captained and crewed by Lion's Arch citizens and Lionguard Marines.

The _Sunfire_ set sail from Claw Island and out to the Sea of Sorrows several days ago to reach Southsun Cove. The cove was reported by the Consortium to be experiencing 'turbulence,' in weeks past, but a more recent report by a Lionguard inspector suggested that the Consortium had made a severe understatement in its report. Karka and other wild animals were going mad and attacking any and all settlers on the island. Lion's Arch sent ships such as _Sunfire_ and others to ferry skilled adventurers and Lionguard troops to the island to beat back the mad wildlife, as well as to bombard overrun section of the cove with cannonfire.

Several adventurers came out of the lower decks to breathe the fresh air. On the starboard side of the ship, they could see Southsun Cove, a tropical island, with several islets around it. The main port on the cove, if you could call it a port, was on Pearl Islet, where the Consortium have built an island resort, but there were other anchorages on the islands, none of them safe.

"Captain!" called out one of the adventurers. Diegovich was his name, a Human Engineer from the Kingdom of Kryta.

He wore a midnight blue naval privateer's coat with white-gold accents. On his head he wore a tricorne hat that was the same shade of blue. Diegovich was a privateer working for Lion's Arch, but he lost his ship in the Straits of Devastation to Risen Minions during the fight against the Elder Dragon Zhaitan. When the struggle for Orr was over, he returned to Lion's Arch to work again, slowly rebuilding his old wealth.

"Diegovich," replied the captain, "What might I assist you with?"

"Nothing, captain," he replied, "It's just good to be on a ship again."

"Those damn Orrians nearly sunk the _Sunfire_ too, you know," told the captain, "This huge Risen megalodon smashed into the lower decks from under the sea. She was taking water so fast, all the while with Risen pirates climbing aboard the ship! I was able to run her aground near Fort Trinity, saving the ship, but the crew, well, let's just say most of the men here right now weren't there that day."

"I know what you mean," said Diegovich, "Say, Captain, it looks like the whole damn beach is pink... and moving!"

"Looks like the northern shoals are overrun with Karka. Look at all of 'em!"

The captain pulled out his telescope to view the shore. There were Karka of all shapes and sizes, the four legged deep sea crustaceans that grew larger and tougher the older they got. From tiny hatchlings, rabid young ones, towering mature Karkas, and one huge Karka domineering over them all.

"By the legions," the captain murmured, "See that big one? That's a Karka Queen!"

"All I see is a beach full of targets, captain."

"Aye, that's exactly what it is. Helmsman! Bring us closer to the northern shore! Crew, man the guns! Round shot! We're killing Karka!"

The frigate turned and moved in closer to the shore. Crewmen loaded the cannons

"Starboard cannons ready, captain!" declared the first mate, a male Sylvari.

"Open fire!"

_Sunfire_ unleashed its starboard broadside, 15 cannons spit out hot iron spheres as another adventurer, a female human elementalist, cast a fire field in the air, in front of the cannons, causing the round shot to be engulfed in fire as it flew toward the beach.

The flaming cannonballs reached their target; the beach was so full of Karka that every cannon hit one or more of the beasts, some piercing through Karka's shells and hitting others, at the same time setting fire to any Karka.

"Reload!" shouted the captain, "And aim for the big mama!"

The _Sunfire_ continued on its course, the crew reloaded the cannons, and the elementalist readied the fire field.

"Fire!" barked the Charr captain.

As the cannons fired the second broadside, the ship came to an abrupt and rough halt. Several crewmen, adventurers, and marines fell from the sudden stoppage. Diegovich and the captain kept their feet, being the most experienced seafarers on the ship.

"What in the eternal alchemy was that?!" cursed an Asuran crewman.

"This close to the cove," Diegovich noted, "It could be a reef. Southsun has plenty."

"Nay," replied the captain, "I've sailed several sorties through this place, even closer sometimes. This is no reef."

The boat rocked and shifted left and right. The sailors heard an eerie crunching sound below the ship.

Diegovich looked over the portside of the ship, and saw the large crustacean limb latching onto the ship's portside.

"Karka Queen!" Diegovich shouted.

"Battle stations!" the captain ordered, "Marines, sailors, everyone! Pick up a weapon and prepare for a fight!"

"You heard the big cat," reminded the Sylvari first mate, "Man up!"

The queen clung onto the ship from under, with two limbs latched to each side of she ship.

Karka hatchlings and young Karka surfaced from underwater and climbed up the ship. The smaller hatchlings entered the ship from the cannon ports, jumping and latching themselves onto crewmen, though they were more of an annoyance than a lethal threat. The young Karka climbed up to the top deck and used their deadly pincers to attack the men up there.

The adventurers grouped together as Lionguard Marines fired their rifles and sailors hacked at the Karka with their boarding axes and swords.

The ship rocked again, the queen's limbs tightening their grip on the ship, slowly pulling it down.

"We need to get ourselves free from the Queen's grip!" shouted a Sylvari guardian to the captain as he put up a shield to deflect the spike barrage of a young Karka.

Several marines pointed their rifles down the side of the ship and opened fire on the queen, but the chitin on her limbs was too tough and the shots only scratched or bounced off the hard shell.

"No use!" the captain called the riflemen off, "We need to draw her up; at this range, the cannons will tear her apart! Gallach, Diegovich, get some bombs ready!"

Gallach, the first mate, ran down to the powder magazine prepare several powder kegs, while Diegovich took a small barrel from his bag.

"Cover me," he called to the Slyvari guardian.

"What is that?" coughed the captain as he sliced a young karka in half with his sword.

Diegovich pressed a button and the barrel folded out to become an even larger barrel, which Diegovich began filling with yellow explosive powder.

Meanwhile, the elementalist stood over the ship's starboard side, and charged lightning magic on her hands. She unleashed it unto the seawater, causing the queen to howl in anger more than pain. The water under the ship soon filled with the floating corpses of dead Karka hatchlings, killed by the lighting.

Gallach returned to the top deck carrying two large powder kegs, and a hatchling clinging to his leg. The captain drew his pistol and shot the hatchling off Gallach's leg with pinpoint accuracy.

Diegovich and Gallach threw their bombs down the sides of the ship. They splashed and sunk into the water, and after a few heartbeats, they detonated, spouting two large water jets, and causing a loud shriek from underwater.

The Karka queen released her grip from the ship's starboard side, and the ship tilted slightly to the left. The limbs on the lumbered up the ship, however, and crashed into the top deck, damaging the hull as the queen revealed her torso from underwater. The beast's other two limbs then clinged to the bottom of the portside and she raised herself up, slightly pushing the ship down.

The beast was massive, pink and purple she was, with barnacles clinging to her hard shell. The captain looked at the queen and smiled.

"Now! Port cannons, broadside! Cook us some seafood!"

The portside guns spat fire and iron, ripping through shell and skin. The Karka queen howled in pain and detached itself from _Sunfire_.

The captain ran to the helm and turned it as hard as he could.

"We're free! I want full sail now!"

Sailors began climbing and opening the masts as others finished off the remaining Karka on the decks.

"Captain," Gallach called, "The queen made substantial damage to the hull; at the rate we're taking in water, we'll never make it to Pearl Islet!"

"I'm aiming for Pride Point."

Diegovich turned to the captain, "Pride Point is overrun!"

"Not as overrun as the rest of the shoals!"

The captain turned to run straight at Pride Point, a makeshift Lionguard anchorage on the northeastern shoals of Southsun Cove. The captain would sooner run his ship aground at Pride Point and make a mad dash to the coalition of Consortium, Lionguard, and Settler troops fighting the Karka horde near Pearl Islet than have his ship sunk and crew dragged under by Karka. Better to die fighting than drowning.

Just then, the wind made a sudden shift, and the ship slowed.

"Bloody traitorous wind," cried Gallach.

The ship was again forced to a halt, accompanied by the crunching of wood and the growling of a mad Karka queen.

The queen climbed up from the ship's stern, and smashed her limbs down, killing several crewmen. The captain met her face to face in desperation, jumping at her with his sword raised, unloading his pistol at the beast.

It was no use. The queen tore the old Charr apart with her pincers, and dug her limbs deeper into the ship. She was going to sink _Sunfire_ or tear it apart, whichever came first. Marines and sailors fired and hacked at the beast relentlessly, to no avail. The guardian dropped his shield, drew his hammer and began smashing the armored limbs with little effect, while Diegovich and the elementalist attacked it from afar.

Gallach was unloaded his twin pistols, uselessly, and turned his head to see white sails in the distance.

"Ship spotted on the portside!" he called out. Diegovich turned to see the sails. He ran to where the captain dropped his telescope, picked it up, and viewed the ship.

It was a Lion's Arch corvette. Two masts, a small ship that had one gun deck with only around 16 guns by the look of it. The corvettes were the fastest and most maneuverable warships in the Lion's Arch fleet.

"She's sailing towards us!" Diegovich announced. The corvette was moving at an incredible speed.

The corvette quickly got in range, and fired a broadside at the Karka queen.

"Brace!" Gallach commanded. The crew ducked and took cover.

As the cannonballs flew close to the queen, they detonated and rained hot shrapnel onto the queen, who replied with a shriek as she again released _Sunfire_ from her grip.

Gallach ran to the helm. "Go!" he cried out, "Drop some things overboard! We need to gain speed!"

Crewmen threw dead sailors, barrels, powder kegs, and cannonballs our of the ship to remove some weight from the _Sunfire_. She was close to being ripped into two from the damage she sustained from the Karka queen. The corvette was still sailing in the deeper waters off the Cove."

The _Sunfire_ managed to make it to Pride Point; Gallach ran the ruined ship aground on the abandoned anchorage and it nearly ripped in two.

"Off the ship now!" Gallach ordered, "Carry the wounded out! We need to get to Pearl Islet!"

Sailors, marines, and the adventurers scrambled off the ship, swinging down from ropes, while dropping ladders and ramps. They were greeted by several young Karka on the shore, which the marines quickly dispatched.

"Gallach!" Diegovich called, "There's a big Karka horde coming at us from the south!"

"Quickly," Gallach beckoned, "Get the wounded up that shipwreck!"

Close to Pride Point was a shipwreck on some rocks that the Lionguard had turned into a camp. Gallach decided to try and weather the horde from there instead of a suicidal run to Pearl Islet.

"Hurry!" Diegovich ordered the sailors. Everyone stopped for a moment when a familiar growling was heard behind the _Sunfire_.

"Run!" shouted a sailor.

The wounded Karka queen burst out from behind the _Sunfire_, splitting the damaged shit in two, and letting out a frightening shriek.

"She's hurt! Marines! Adventurers!" Gallach called, "With me! We're taking this sea whore down!"

A group of marines stayed with the sailors to provide fire support from the shipwreck rock.

"Open fire!" Gallach ordered. The Marines fired their muskets at the beast, aiming at her more vulnerable joints, the guardian took his scepter and barraged the queen with light magic, while the elementalist bombarded it with a meteor shower, and Diegovich threw grenades and fired his guns.

Their sustained barrage was whittling, but not enough to kill the queen. She advanced slowly on them, forcing them to withdraw slowly back to the rock.

When she was close enough, the queen leaped and landed among the group killing a few marines, while wounding and knocking back others. The survivors fell back to the rock, but Gallach and the three adventurers remained to hold the queen back.

"She's too strong," the elementalist cried, "We can't kill her!"

"No," Gallach replied, "but they can!"

Gallach pointed out to the sea while hearing the cheering of his surviving crewmen from the rocks. Where the lone corvette was, now there were over thirty Lion's Arch ships, frigates, corvettes, and the massive ships-of-the-line, the largest of which had over a hundred guns.

Diegovich dropped a glue bomb and signaled everyone to run. Before the bomb exploded, though, the queen caught Gallach with her large leg, trapping him. The glue bomb exploded, and the queen, as well as Gallach, was stuck to the ground.

The Sylvari guardian couldn't bear leaving his kin behind, so he ran back to try and save him.

"No!" Gallach urged,"Leave me!"

The Lionguard fleet opened fire on the shoals, hundreds of cannons flew across the waters an impacted all throughout the beaches, killing hundreds, possibly thousands, of Karka.

Diegovich and the elementalist ran to the shipwreck rock as the cannons exploded all around them. They dove into the ruined ship.

"Ugh..." the elementalist groaned, "H-help..."

Diegovich looked to see a large piece of shrapnel from the bombardment had flew into her gut, and she was bleeding to death. They had to remove the shrapnel and seal the wound.

"I can take it out," he said to the elementalist, "but you have to drop a water field, or any healing spell on yourself when I do!"

"I can't..."

"You can," Diegovich replied, "You two, hold her down."

"Ready?"

"No..."

"You're going to die if I don't, damn it!"

"Please..."

"Oh, damn it! Here goes!"

Diegovich pulled out the piece of shrapnel and a marine doctor began trying to seal the wound, but it was too large; it could not be healed without magic.

"Cast a water field now! A healing spell! Anything! Please!"

The elementalist was crying in pain.

"No," she cried, almost uncomprehensible, "I can't..."

No amount of Diegovich's medkits or healing turrets could save her. He prayed to Dwayna that she heal her, to Grenth so that he may have pity on her, but alas, they did not answer.

She perished soon after.

The bombardment ended a minute later, and the crew came out to see the beach decimated, littered with mangled Karka carcasses, among them several queens, including the one that had attacked them.

Gallach and the Sylvari guardian did not survive.

The forces at Pearl Islet pushed forward and began hunting down the remaining Karka while reclaiming the rest of the island.

The corvette that saved the crew of the _Sunfire_ put down its anchor at Pride Point, while the rest of the fleet either moved to Pearl Islet or back to Lion's Arch.

A lone Human warrior climbed off the corvette, which Diegovich observed was named _Night Lion_.

The warrior approached Diegovich.

"Damn good fighting there, Engi," said the warrior.

"Didn't save the captain, though," Diegovich replied, "or Gallach, or those two other adventurers."

"Southsun is saved."

"And I have nothing left," Diegovich replied, "I'm think it's time to retire. Go back to Divinity's Reach, find a wife, have kids. There are plenty of heroes out there. I fought one Elder Dragon already. Let the others kill the rest."

"You could," the warrior responded, "but that isn't the ideal life for an engineer like yourself, is it? You still want battle, but you don't want the permanent loss."

"If only."

"But there is a way," the warrior replied.

"Is that so?" Diegovich asked.

"Yes. You are a nocturnal, correct?"

"I am," Diegovich answered, "What of it?"

"What do you know of the Mist War?" the warrior inquired.

"An eternal battle between our reality and that of others? Where warriors are damned to fight for all eternity to protect our world."

"You aren't well-informed on the Mist War, are you? Mortals who are still living in this world can enter the Mists and fight in the Mist War, without fear of permanent death. If a living soul dies in the Mist War, they revive without any side-effects."

"And you wish to recruit me?"

"That's why I'm here, Diegovich. The Commander of Ehmry Bay's Nite Watch is in dire need of soldiers, builders, and others skilled in warfare. We have a well organized and numerous day army, but at night, Borlis Pass fields a far superior numerical force. We can hold them, but our holdings are decimated in the process."

"I have nothing here," Diegovich remarked, "I will go."

And so his watch begins.


	2. Prologue 2

Prologue, Part 2: Assault on Ebonhawke

"Scipio!" a voice shouted, Get up!"

Scipio Sagittarius regained his consciousness to see Sergeant Eli Peregrine shaking him to wake up. He looked around, still dazed from being knocked back by the mortar blast. Scipio's ears were still ringing. All he could see were Sergeant Eli's soft face, her brown eyes, and black hair. And then the shock left him.

"Scipio!" she shouted at him again, "Commander Samuelsson is calling the rangers back to Ebonhawke! Let's go!"

Sergeant Eli lead a dozen rangers into Sniper's Woods that morning to investigate a report that Human Separatists were gathering for a large-scale operation. It turns our that the reports were correct, mostly. They were gathering for a large-scale operation, but not in the woods. It turned out that the separatists were expecting the Ebon Vanguard to send a large force to sweep the woods, where they would be caught by an ambush, while the rest of the separatists attacked Ebonhawke fortress, which would be marginally less defended.

What happened instead was that the Ebon Vanguard did not commit a large force, but a small team of elite rangers who knew the forest well. The ambush backfired, with the rangers tracking down and neutralizing hidden separatists. And then the bells of Ebonhawke started ringing. The fortress was under attack.

That was the signal. Even more separatists came out of the woods, forcing the rangers to retreat. The twelve took cover in the ruined Charr heavy tanks, holding off the separatist forces with expert use of their longbows.

They caused half a hundred separatist casualties at the cost of two rangers. That when they heard Charr mortars firing their shells in the distance. The barrage hit the Ebon Vanguard Rangers and the separatists. The Charr Renegades were going to attack as well.

"Run!" ordered Eli, pulling Scipio back up to his feet. "Back to the Hawkgates!" she shouted as she started running, leaving Scipio.

"My raven," Scipio mumbled, "Aya!"

A large black raven flew to Scipio and landed on his shoulder.

"Good girl," Scipio told the raven, "Fly to the walls. I don't need your help now. Go!"

The raven took flight, and Scipio started running, following the fleeing rangers. More mortarfire was heard in the distance.

Three rangers were killed by the mortar barrage. The remaining seven, Eli and Scipio included ran as fast as they could.

"Halt!" ordered Eli, pointing at a group of separatists, armed with swords, hammers, and axes, running up the road to the Hawkgates.

There were eight separatists. The seven rangers drew arrows from their quivers.

"Notch!" Eli shouted, notching an arrow to the bowstring as the separatists ran toward them.

"Draw and Loose!"

Scipio, Eli, and the rangers quickly pulled the strings of their longbows and let loose, releasing seven deadly armor-piercing arrows at the separatists.

Seven arrows loosed, and seven separatists killed.

The last one charged on, his eyes set on Eli, only a few feet away. Eli quickly pulled a knife out from its sheath and threw it at the separatist. The knife's blade found it's mark in the separatist's throat. Eli kicked the separatist down and left him to die before continuing on.

They ran up to the Hawkgates, where several separatists were clashing with Ebon Vanguard soldiers. The Vanguard troops were donned in their black armor, accented with gold. The heavy infantry wore chain and plate, and the archers wore leather.

The rangers drew their melee weapons, some had one-handed shortswords or longswords, throwing axes, or daggers. Scipio had a half-and-half greatsword with a black hilt and guard, with gold accents and a shining steel blade, while Eli held a similarly patterend longsword on one hand, and a dagger on the other.

The rangers closed the distance and took the separatists unaware. Scipio thrust his greatsword into a separatist's belly, and quickly pulled it out to make a powerful two-handed downward slash on another separatist who had wounded an Ebon Vanguard soldier. His attack smashed through the separatist's shoulder, the sword going all the way down from the shoulder to the nipple area.

Scipio pulled out the blade and kicked the separatist down to see that the entire group of separatists were dead or dying.

The lieutenant in command of the Vanguard troops at the gate thanked the rangers for their timely assistance.

"Sergeant Peregrine," the lieutenant called. He was wearing heavy Ascalonian chain armor, hiding his features under the helmet.

"Lieutenant," Sergeant Eli saluted, "What's the situation, sir?"

"Separatists assaulted the postern gate with a large number of troops," the lieutenant reported, "They got a good number through before we sealed the gate and got the arrow carts zeroed in. After that, every separatist and sympathizer in the city took up arms and joined the attack."

"How long until we can close the Hawkgates?" asked the sergeant.

The lieutenant looked up at the gates.

"Several separatists rushed up the walls and took the gate from our sentries. We sent reinforcements, but we don't know how long until we can regain control the gates."

"We'll go and take back the gate winches," Eli volunteered.

"No, sergeant," the lieutenant denied, "You and what's left of your team will help us hold the Hawkgates until they are closed."

"Yes, sir," Eli complied, "but what about the rest of the city?"

"The Fallen Angels and the rest of the Vanguard can deal with them," assured the lieutenant, "It's our job to make sure the ones inside don't get any reinforcements."

"Lieutenant!" shouted one of the Vanguard archers, "More separatists advancing toward the Hawkgates!"

"Stand firm! Archers, you are under Sergeant Peregrine's command!" the lieutenant called out, "Sergeant, form up in front of the heavy infantry and take out as many as you can!"

The sergeant saluted.

"Rangers and Archers of the Vanguard, with me! Form up!" Sergeant Eli called.

"Vanguard!" addressed the Lieutenant, "Form shield wall!"

The Vanguard heavy infantry formed a tight shield formation, spearmen in front, with swords behind.

The rangers and archers positioned themselves in a line in front of the heavy infantry.

The separatists charged up the ramp.

"Notch!" Eli shouted, and the archers notched their arrows.

"Draw!"

"Loose!"

Several arrows flew at the horde of separatist attackers, killing several of them in an instant, and slowing them down as the others tripped and pushed the dead aside

"Notch!"

"Draw!"

"Loose!"

Another volley, and the advance was stalled. Some began to turn tail and run.

The separatists were unarmored and had little room for tactics; to reach the Hawkgates, they had to run up a long, relatively narrow ramp, wide enough for one large carriage. The Ebon Vanguard Archers only had to point their bows down the ramp and loose volley after volley at foes as they ascended.

The separatist assault was halted, and the survivors ran back down the ramp. In the distance, more separatists gathered around the ramp. A few moments later, they resumed the assault, this time with large, makeshift shields.

The archers loosed their bows, but the separatists formed a shield wall of their own. Most of the arrows hit the shields, penetrating them, but not enough to kill the men behind them. The separatists put down the damaged shields and replaced them with new shields.

"Aim higher! Loose!"

Another volley was loosed, and this time the arrows flew over the shields and into the men behind the shield-bearers. The advance was slowed somewhat, but then the separatists ordered the extra shields be raised.

"Damn it," cursed Sergeant Eli, "Keep loosing arrows! Those shields are flimsy; the arrows will go through at some point!"

Arrows were released at will, and several indeed broke through the wood and wounded or killed a few separatists.

Several rifle-armed separatists popped out of the shield-turtle and fired on the Vanguard soldiers.

Some of the shots were off their marks, but the bullets that did hit were hard, killing or disabling a few archers on contact, while disorienting the rest.

"Steady!" Eli called out.

"Sergeant!" shouted the lieutenant, "They're closing the distance! Fall back!"

"Archers," Eli ordered, "Withdraw!"

As the archers withdrew behind the heavy infantry, the separatists broke formation and charged at the Hawkgates.

"Stand fast!" the lieutenant barked, "Today, we are the walls of Ebonhawke!"

The separatist rabble smashed into the Ebon Vanguard shield wall, but the Vanguard troops were armored and had their thick shields braced. The separatists did not daze them. The Vanguard replied with the thrusting of spears, the first two lines forming a phalanx of spears, killing several separatists with thrusts and jabs.

"Push!" ordered the lieutenant, and the Vanguard troops stepped forward, still bracing their shields. The separatists staggered back a few steps.

"Throw spears!"

The Vanguard spearmen flipped their grip on their spears and hurled them at the separatists. Several more of the rebels died.

"Swords!"

The front lines of Vanguard troops drew their short swords, while the rest stood ready with swords already drawn.

"Advance!"

They marched forward, keeping their formation, pushing the disorganized rebel troops back. The front line bashed with their shields separatist fighters who got in their way, and followed up with quick thrusts with their shortswords, stabbing the stunned separatists repeatedly.

"Archers, volley!" shouted the lieutenant.

Scipio, Eli, and the rest of the archers let loose a volley of arrows above the Vanguard heavy infantry, and the arrows found their marks on the wavering separatist assault.

"Break formation! Finish them! For Ebonhawke! And Ascalon!"

"Ascalon!" the Vanguard troops chanted and cheered.

The Vanguard troops broke their shield wall and charged into the separatists while shouting their war cries. Their resolve shattered immediately, and the separatists broke and ran.

"They retreat! Victory is ours!"

The Vanguard soldiers cheered as the Separatist forces ran back to their hastily constructed siege camps.

The cheering came to an abrupt halt, however, as mortars began bombarding the separatist forces. The sounds of screaming and explosions drowned out the siege plains as a force of Charr renegades appeared on the crest of the hill. Large, horned, feline people, the Charr are born and bred for war. The renegades may have broken off from the Legions of the Black Citadel, who were currently negotiating the peace treaty with Ebonhawke, but the renegades were still Charr with the same training and skill. Still deadly.

With a mighty war cry, the Charr renegades charged down the hill, swooping across the distraught and broken separatist forces.

It was a massacre; the separatists were annihilated by the organized and well-armed Charr renegades.

"Lieutenant!" called a voice from behind Scipio. It was Wade Samuelsson, commander of the Ebon Vanguard.

"Sir," the lieutenant started, "The Separatists are routed, but the Charr are moving to assault the gates."

"I know, soldier," Samuelsson replied, "I'm afraid I'm going to ask you to hold them off a while longer."

"Sir, those are Charr-"

"I know, lieutenant. We need more time. The Separatists have been cleared from the streets, but most of them made for the walls, and they sabotaged the gate winches. I just need you to hold the Hawkgates for a few more minutes. Keep Ascalon in your heart; this fortress will stand, as it has stood for hundreds of years."

"Yes, sir! For Ebonhawke! And Ascalon!"

"For Ascalon!" echoed the soldiers.

"I'll leave a few more men here as reinforcements. The arrow carts on the wall will be loaded and ready soon Hold the Hawkgates, lieutenant."

Commander Samuelsson took several of his men with him and ran back to the walls.

"You heard the man!" shouted the lieutenant, "Hold the Hawkgates!"

Eli and Scipio were joined by several more rangers from the Ebonhawke garrison.

The heavy infantry quickly formed their formation again in front of the Hawkgates. The rest formed up in the courtyard directly behind the Hawkgates to fight off any breakthrough.

By now, the Charr renegades had finished butchering the remnants of the Separatist force and began advancing on the Hawkgates.

"Ebonhawke has been besieged for years! No assault has ever breached the walls or the Hawkgates!" bragged a Vanguard archer.

"Except the Hawkgates were closed shut during those assaults," Scipio retorted.

"Form up!" Eli ordered.

"Stand fast!" the lieutenant rallied, "Here they come!"

"For Ascalon!" A few soldiers shouted.

"Ascalon!" responded the rest of the Ebon Vanguard.

A volley of arrows from the walls of Ebonhawke flew down to the Renegade forces; the renegades responded with wild rifle and pistol fire.

The Charr shouted as they charged into the Vanguard formation, the Charr, being significantly heavier and quite larger than humans, smashed through the formation, knocking down several Vanguard soldiers to the ground.

"Break!" the lieutenant ordered.

The Vanguard troops broke formation, and engaged the Charr.

The archers had no chance to launch any arrows, as the Charr broke through the first line and advanced into the courtyard. The fighting quickly developed into a disorganized and chaotic slog.

The clash of steel, the smoke from gunpowder, the spilling of blood were everywhere. Shields were banged and smashed, pistols were fired, and swords swung. War had come to Ebonhawke once again.

"Rangers, charge!" ordered Eli.

Scipio and the rest followed Eli into the fray. Scipio ran forward into the melee and brought his sword down into a Charr's skull, killing him instantly. Scipio then turned to parry an attack from a Charr swordsman.

The Charr were fearsome and ferocious in battle. They had no fear, or at least never showed it. They would fight to the bitter end if ordered to.

Scipio's opponent doubled back as Scipio made a sidewards slash at the Charr. The renegade parried Scipio's attacks well, until the Charr was struck in the back by a throwing axe. He howled in pain before Scipio finished him.

"Sarge!" Scipio shouted, seeing Eli about to be attacked from behind. Eli turned and threw her dagger at the Charr behind her, to little effect, while Scipio moved to assist her.

The Charr swung his axe at Eli, who dodged the blow. As Eli positioned herself to counter-attack, the Charr renegade pulled out a pistol with his other hand and fired just as Scipio jumped in to cut the Charr's hand off.

"Ah!" Eli cried out. She was hit. Scipio carried her up and slowly moved her out of the combat.

"I got you!" Scipio assured her.

Another Charr moved to block Scipio path, seeing the he and Eli as easy kills. The Charr pushed Scipio down, causing him to drop Eli. Scipio gave a loud whistle.

The Charr laughed and raised his axe, at the same time stepping on Scipio's chest to keep him from rolling.

Scipio drew his dagger and drove it into the Charr's ankle, causing the Charr to stagger back, angry. He kept his axe raised to finish Scipio, but Scipio had rolled out of the way by the time he smashed his axe down. He growled and again tried to hit Scipio, but before he could strike, a large raven attacked the Charr, clawing at his face.

Scipio took a spear from the ground and thrust it into the Charr's throat.

"Good girl, Aya!" Scipio muttered as he took the dead Charr's pistol.

He found Eli crawling on the ground, with the corpses of both Humans and Charr all around them, and the battle still raging.

Another Charr made her to Eli to finish her off, but Scipio came to Eli's rescue again, firing the pistol at the Charr's head, killing it instantly.

Scipio picked up Eli again and carried her off the courtyard, to the market steps. Scipio heard more cheering from the courtyard as he tended to Eli's wounds. He looked to see that the Charr were driven back, that the arrow carts were raining death onto the ramp, and the Hawkgates were slowly closing. Charr renegades scrambled off the courtyard, racing to get out of the gates before they sealed shut, only facing a rain of arrows and ballista fire as soon as they escaped.

Scipio turned back to Eli. Her wounds were serious.

"Healer!" Scipio called.

Another bloody assault on Ebonhawke is over, and the great fortress of Ascalon still stands.

A few minutes after the battle, Commander Samuelsson and the lieutenant came over to Scipio, who was still with Eli. She lost consciousness, but the healers told Scipio that she would live.

"He's the one!" called the lieutenant, "He abandoned the battle for the Hawkgates! A deserter!"

"Deserter?" Scipio replied, "My comrade and commander was wounded. I had to save her!"

"You do not save the life of one to jeopardize the lives of many! One life saved will not make the difference!"

"Then you'll understand that I, myself, would not make much of a difference on my own, then lieutenant? You had the battle. As soon as those arrow carts were operational, they fled. We won."

"You are not part of that victory, and it's captain now, ranger. You disgrace the Ebon Vanguard with your cowardice. As a captain of the Ebon Vanguard, I declare you discharged from the Vanguard, and to be deported from Ebonhawke immediately!"

"She's the best ranger in the Ebonhawke. There's no way I would let her die like that. I saved her, and that's what matters."

Commander Samuelsson turned to the captain, "Scipio is one of the best rangers in the Vanguard. He fought valiantly, just as much as you did. Scipio, desertion is desertion, and you cannot stay in the Vanguard, but I'm willing to let you stay in Ebonhawke. Be a free ranger. Help us here."

"I'm sorry, Commander," Scipio responded, to Samuelsson's surprise, "Like you said: desertion is desertion. I risked my life every day as a ranger of the Vanguard. We advance ahead so that men like the captain here aren't shot in the head by renegade snipers, and this is how Ebonhawke repays me. No, I will no loner fight for Ebonhawke. Ascalon is dead, and there are more pressing struggles in this world. I leave tomorrow night."

Scipio's last day on Ebonhawke felt like forever; it was a bittersweet experience, packing his bags in the morning and saying goodbye to all his friends. For the rest of the afternoon, he sat in the Ebon Vanguard sickbay, beside Eli, who had still not awakened. She was alive, however; he felt her pulse and heard her breath.

Was Scipio in love with her? He wasn't sure. He was infatuated, however. He had never known a better ranger, or a lovelier woman. He smiled and shed a tear, as he would not be able to give her a proper goodbye. He wrote a letter for Eli, and left it in a sealed envelope on the table beside her. On the envelope it was addressed, "_Eliana Peregrine, Captain of the Ebon Vanguard Rangers._"

Scipio took a slow walk through the quiet night streets of Ebonhawke, seeing the sights, hearing the sounds, and smelling the smells for the last time. He bought a few items from the Kestrel Market, and made his way to the Hawke Heart, in the center of the city, where a massive statue of the six human gods stood, honoring Ascalon's past. He had considered hanging his Ebon Vanguard necklace with his name etched on it, on the monument, but he figured someone would just steal it, so he left the necklace in the envelope he had addressed to Eli.

Finally, Scipio reached the Asura Gate. He looked back, at the Hawkgates, the massive walls of Ebonhawke. All his life, he had lived here, he had fought here, for 'Ascalon,' but Ascalon was gone. There were other things to fight for; things that can still be fought for.

Ascalon is but a memory that can never be reclaimed. But out there be dragons and other universes fighting battle in the mists, in hopes of invading our own. Those were causes worth fighting for, Scipio had concluded. He smiled as he stepped into the Asura Gate to Divinity's Reach, the capital of Kryta, and from there he would make his way to Lion's Arch, the gateway to the world.


End file.
